Peculiar Pre-Teens

By Prasham Mehta

Ever been treated like a child but asked to behave like an adult?

Ever thought of the opposite gender as a species of lunatic apes but then fallen for one?

Ever been forced to follow the rules but wanted desperately to try the rebel way?

Volumes have been spoken about teens and children, but what about the ones in between them? Sandwiched between two entirely different time frames of life, here we stand, the pre-teens.

This book is about the peculiar pre-teens and their sweetsour experiences of middle school, the days when life feels like a slap from a hurricane and, at the same time, a kiss from a flower so soft.

This bookPeculiar Pre-Teensby Prasham Mehta provides an understanding of the thinking and feeling patterns as well as the priorities of the pre-teens and how they manifest their response to such situations (Mrs Beena Handa).

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing India
• Release date: Jul 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781482875201

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 by Prasham Mehta.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

www.partridgepublishing.com/india

Contents

Acknowledgements

Foreword

Peculiar Pre-Teens

Day 1 - Excitement And The Jumble Rumble

Adios! Ya Amigos

The New Class

The Repulsive Response Of The Class Teacher

100% Sure, The Grass Is Greener On The Other Side

Realising The Soft Sponge Inside The Hard Shell

The Name-Fame Game

The Real Filth Of Middle School Shows Up

Transition: Forget The Past And Restart Rocking

The Drama Queen Domination

Butter V1.0

Stepping Into Fame

Fame Or Friendship

Frenzy Friends; Notorious Nights

That’s It

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Feeling of gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not gifting it

the just ‘idea’ of writing a book was turned into reality by a few special people in my life; The people who have been along with me in this dream catching endeavor. Parents if not because of their efforts, I would have never been able to write this book or be a part of the Milky Way galaxy. Thanks Ma and Pa.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S have been the pillar of support during this entire journey. Thanks a lot Jay for motivating me, thanks Aditya for having faith in me, thanks Kapil. Also, special appreciation for all other friends who have been there to help.

Now the one who turned me from a ‘English achi bolne wala’ geek into a pro writer – Shimna Maam, thanks for discovering my true potent. Thanks Sunita Ma’am and Principal sir for reviewing the book.

Thanks Shivangee for those amazing doodles. You just added great value to my book. I mean talking figuratively and mathematically; those doodles are really a game-changing factor.

Thanks a lot to Beena Handa Ma’am for adding a silver lining to this book.

Thanks Patridge publications.

Thanks Dhruv

Pooja Fia

Neerav Mama

FOREWORD

Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. The same situation, but varied responses. If I extend the same logic to the pre-teens, it is the same child, but experienced differently by parents, teachers and friends. This book-Peculiar Pre-teens – by Prasham Mehta provides an understanding of the thinking and feeling patterns as well as the priorities of children and how these manifest into responses to situations. It also reminds us of the dreams and immense potential children have and how we adults can help them to discover it. The beauty of the book is that it is written by a pre-teen in pre-teen age, with experiences still fresh in the mind and who is still on the way of validating his moments of truth.

Prasham has chosen to focus on friends and life at school, showing how small and big incidents become instrumental in learning about oneself, working out strategies to deal with it, thus accumulating life-skills. For a mature person like me, it provides an opportunity to know about what pre-teens think and feel about themselves, about their world, the prevalent jargons and words and ways of strengthening connect with them. The pleasure and pains of processes like class re-shuffling are excellent case-studies of the dynamics between students and teacher-students. The words like frenemy, rhymes like Ego-Lego and wild imagination and comparisons enhances the pleasure and empathy.

This book is a sublimation of creativity identified by his teachers, encouragement provided by the parents, teachers and friends and the risk and initiative Prasham has taken by sharing his experiences, reflections and lessons learnt from mistakes too! I had a lot of interaction with him when he came to Poiesis three years back, from Surat, for our confidence and aspiration building programs in the summer vacation. As a mentor, it is a great feeling to see his creativity expressed in print. I challenge him to be at his best in whatever endeavors he undertakes and excel in life.

Best wishes for a smile and success, always!

Beena Handa

Founder

Poiesis Achievement Foundation

Ahmedabad

PECULIAR PRE-TEENS

Pre-teen: the most unexpected person on earth. A person with limitless imagination; incredible curiosity; out of the world thought process; hypocrisy in veins and a wicked, amusing and naughty smile. Pre-teens are the most wacky and madcap beings. And the way they are treated is even more bizarre, they are ordered to behave like adults but are expected to live as children.

It’s a privilege to cherish the pre-teenage moments. It’s the only time when life feels lively and we come across a billion new people, places and things. During this period we get to know about our talents, we find passion in something; we set goals and gradually become a MAN.

Pre-teenage modifies our way of thinking. We pre-teens have a realistic and a bit selfish approach which is sometimes regarded as negative approach. And thus, everyone tries to improve us, so, what we mainly receive from *elders* is the ‘ideas’ of how to be a gentleman, or the ‘habits’ inculcated by an effective adult or the ‘odds’ of us turning into an academic acumen.

This book is about the peculiar pre-teens and their sweet-sour experience of middle school. The experiences described here matter a lot for pre-teens as they influence our passion as well as our payroll; it intensifies our mission as well as our vision. This book is not written by one of those bookish nerds who are complete airheads, but by that undisciplined head who is a prank specialist and a despicable nitwit, so I guess this is gonna be a fun journey.

This book isn’t like those classics with a happy ending always, or those emotional climax with artificial tears everywhere, instead this book will be nail biting, giggle creating, jaw dropping (ok, that’s exaggeration, I mean this isn’t Steven Spielberg writing) book which will surely change the view of the world for pre-teens and also the impression of the world for the world.

Pre-teenage: it’s a time when we become the real us, it’s when whatever we speak becomes paradoxical. It’s a wonderland where every sight is a surprise, it’s a forest where every second is breath taking and it’s a vacation where every moment is memorable. It’s when we understand the principles of adulthood; it’s when we undergo the changes of puberty and the time when we grasp the essence of maturity in us.

Being a part of Middle school is like tasting the sourness of life and savoring the tanginess of the real world. It is an endeavor to complete us that